Bilevel respiratory therapy system, controller and method

Abstract

A respiratory therapy system is configured to supply breathing gases to a patient and comprises a controller configured to control the pressure of breathable gas delivered to the patient. The system can control the flow of breathable gas to the patient taking into account whether or not a breath is detected, and whether or not the patient is awake or asleep. The system is configured to: detect when the patient is inhaling and to control the flow generator to deliver breathable gas at an inspiration pressure (IPAP), detect when the patient is exhaling and to control the flow generator to deliver breathable gas at an expiration pressure (EPAP), the EPAP being lower than the IPAP, and detect when the patient is at least one of awake and / or asleep. The system is also configured to receive or generate a back-up time related variable which is compared with a time related variable of at least a portion of a breath of the patient such that the breathable gas delivered to the patient is automatically controlled at IPAP, if inspiration is not detected in accordance with the back-up time related variable. The back-up time related variable may be a rate or duration for example. The delivery of breathable gas to the patient is further controlled if inspiration is not detected in accordance with the back-up time related variable and the system detects that the patient is awake. For example, if the patient is awake, the system may not automatically switch to IPAP, even if a breath is not detected within a predetermined time.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONField of the Invention[0001]The present invention generally relates to a bi-level respiratory therapy system, controller and method wherein pressure of a breathable gas delivered to a patient is controlled to increase during inspiration and to decrease during expiration.Description of the Related Art[0002]Respiratory therapy systems, controllers and methods have been proposed to treat respiratory illness, including, for example, Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).[0003]OSA is associated with many conditions in which there is an anatomic or functional narrowing of the patient's upper airway, and is characterized by an intermittent obstruction of the upper airway occurring during sleep. The obstruction results in a spectrum of respiratory disturbances ranging from the total absence of airflow (apnea) to significant obstruction with or without reduced airflow (hypopnea and snoring), despite continued respiratory efforts. The morbidity of the syndrome arises from h...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present disclosure is aimed at providing an improved bi-level respiratory therapy system, controller and method that can automatically adjust the settings based on the patient's needs and comfort level, and that can also adjust the pressure support based on the patient's state of awareness or asleepness. This feature helps to ensure that patients are always comfortable and well-supported during sleep apnea therapy.

Problems solved by technology

The obstruction results in a spectrum of respiratory disturbances ranging from the total absence of airflow (apnea) to significant obstruction with or without reduced airflow (hypopnea and snoring), despite continued respiratory efforts.

In most cases, PAP therapy does not take the sleep / wake state of the patient into account, such that PAP systems can apply pressure unnecessarily when the patient is awake.